Introduction

recostar means “to lean, to lie down”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. It is the verb for expressing “to lean, to lie down” in everyday Spanish — in conversation, at work, and at home. This page shows recostar in real sentences, in short dialogues, and in the mistakes learners make most often, and it finishes with a ten-question quiz so you can test yourself. Every sentence below comes with its English translation, and every form is the correct form unless the sentence is clearly marked as past or future. For a first taste: “Yo recuesto la cabeza en la almohada por la mañana.” — “I lean my head on the pillow.”

recostar in real example sentences

The twelve sentences below are grouped by how recostar is used. Read each one out loud, then read the translation. If a sentence feels useful, copy it into your own notebook with one small change — a different time, a different person, a different place — and you have a new sentence of your own.

In the present: everyday use

These sentences use {verb} in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.

  1. “Yo recuesto la cabeza en la almohada cada día.” — “I lean my head on the pillow.”
  2. “Tú recuestas la cabeza en la almohada cada día.” — “you lean my head on the pillow.”
  3. “Él recuesta la cabeza en la almohada siempre.” — “He leans my head on the pillow.”
  4. “Nosotros recostamos la cabeza en la almohada todos los días.” — “We lean my head on the pillow.”

Talking about the past

The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show {verb} in the past, so you can talk about what already happened. 5. “Yo recosté la cabeza en la almohada ayer.” — “I leaned my head on the pillow.” (preterite) 6. “Él recostó la cabeza en la almohada ayer.” — “He leaned my head on the pillow.” (preterite) 7. “Yo recostaba la cabeza en la almohada cuando era joven.” — “I used to lean my head on the pillow.” (imperfect)

Plans and things already done

These sentences look forward, or look back at something already finished. Notice how the verb form changes while the meaning of {verb} stays the same. 8. “Nosotros recostaremos la cabeza en la almohada mañana.” — “We will lean my head on the pillow.” (future) 9. “Tú has recostado la cabeza en la almohada hoy.” — “you have leaned my head on the pillow.” (present-perfect) 10. “Espero que yo recueste la cabeza en la almohada.” — “I hope that I lean my head on the pillow.” (present-subjunctive)

More everyday uses

Two more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action. 11. “Vosotros recostáis la cabeza en la almohada cada semana.” — “You lean my head on the pillow.” 12. “Ellos recuestan la cabeza en la almohada normalmente.” — “They lean my head on the pillow.”

recostar in context

Single sentences teach you the forms. Dialogues teach you when to use them. Read the short conversation below, then the paragraph that follows, and notice how recostar appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.

Dialogue at home in the evening

Ana: “¿Tú recuestas la cabeza en la almohada?” — Do you lean my head on the pillow?

Luis: “Sí, yo recuesto la cabeza en la almohada cada día. Es parte de mi rutina.” — Yes, I lean my head on the pillow every day. It is part of my routine.

Ana: “¿Y ayer? ¿También recuestas la cabeza en la almohada?” — And yesterday? Did you lean my head on the pillow too?

Luis: “Sí, ayer yo recosté la cabeza en la almohada. Mañana nosotros recostaremos la cabeza en la almohada otra vez.” — Yes, yesterday I leaned my head on the pillow. Tomorrow we will lean my head on the pillow again.

A short paragraph

Él recuesta la cabeza en la almohada cada día — that one sentence already tells you a lot about how recostar works in real Spanish: who does it, when, and with what. Around it you can build a whole paragraph: what happened yesterday, what is happening now, and what will happen tomorrow, all with the same verb. When you write your own paragraph, start with the present — yo recuesto la cabeza en la almohada — then add one past sentence and one future sentence, and you have practised three tenses with one verb. That is the fastest way to make recostar yours: use it in a story, not only in a table.

Common mistakes

Using the unchanged stem

Learners often write recosto for the yo form, keeping the infinitive stem unchanged. The correct form is recuesto. Because recostar changes its stem vowel, the change appears in the stressed syllables of the present: say the correct form out loud a few times — yo recuesto la cabeza en la almohada — until the changed stem feels natural.

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is recosté, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — recoste — is a spelling error, and in speech the stress lands in the wrong place. Preterite yo forms that end in a vowel carry that accent, so check it every time you write the preterite of recostar.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For recostar, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: recostamos. Only the context tells you which tense is meant, so pay attention to the time words around it — cada día points to the present, ayer points to the preterite. Do not invent a different form for one of the tenses.

Using ser instead of haber in perfect tenses

Spanish perfect tenses always use haber, never ser: yo he recostado la cabeza en la almohada. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy recostado is not the present perfect of recostar — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.

Confusing recostar with recuperar

recostar and recuperar look similar, and learners mix them up. They are different verbs with different meanings, so check which one the sentence needs before you conjugate. If you can substitute the English meaning of recostar — lean — the sentence needs recostar; if it needs the meaning of recuperar, use that verb instead.

Quiz

Test yourself on the forms above. Choose the best answer, then check the key below.

1. What is the yo form of recostar in the present?

  • A. recuestas
  • B. recuesta
  • C. recostamos
  • D. recuesto

2. What is the tu form of recostar in the preterite?

  • A. recostamos
  • B. recostaste
  • C. recosté
  • D. recostó

3. What is the el form of recostar in the imperfect?

  • A. recostabas
  • B. recostábamos
  • C. recostabais
  • D. recostaba

4. What is the nosotros form of recostar in the future?

  • A. recostará
  • B. recostaremos
  • C. recostaré
  • D. recostarás

5. What is the vosotros form of recostar in the present perfect?

  • A. he recostado
  • B. has recostado
  • C. ha recostado
  • D. habéis recostado

6. What is the ellos form of recostar in the present subjunctive?

  • A. recueste
  • B. recuesten
  • C. recueste
  • D. recuestes

7. What is the yo form of recostar in the preterite?

  • A. recostaste
  • B. recostó
  • C. recostamos
  • D. recosté

8. What is the tu form of recostar in the imperfect?

  • A. recostábamos
  • B. recostabas
  • C. recostaba
  • D. recostaba

9. What is the el form of recostar in the future?

  • A. recostaré
  • B. recostarás
  • C. recostaremos
  • D. recostará

10. What is the nosotros form of recostar in the conditional?

  • A. recostaría
  • B. recostaríamos
  • C. recostaría
  • D. recostarías

Answer key

  1. recuesto — The present table gives yo = recuesto.
  2. recostaste — The preterite table gives tu = recostaste.
  3. recostaba — The imperfect table gives el = recostaba.
  4. recostaremos — The future table gives nosotros = recostaremos.
  5. habéis recostado — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis recostado.
  6. recuesten — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = recuesten.
  7. recosté — The preterite table gives yo = recosté.
  8. recostabas — The imperfect table gives tu = recostabas.
  9. recostará — The future table gives el = recostará.
  10. recostaríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = recostaríamos.

Frequently asked questions

How do I use recostar in a sentence?

Put the subject first, then the conjugated form, then the rest: “Yo recuesto la cabeza en la almohada.” — “I lean my head on the pillow.” Change the form for the person and the tense, but keep the sentence pattern the same.

What is the most useful form of recostar to learn first?

Learn the present yo form recuesto first, then the preterite yo form recosté and the participle recostado. With those three you can talk about the present, the past and the perfect tenses. Add the gerund recostando next, and you can describe actions in progress too.

Is recostar reflexive?

No — recostar is not reflexive. It takes a direct object, not a reflexive pronoun: yo recuesto la cabeza en la almohada. Do not add me or se to it unless the sentence genuinely needs a pronoun for another reason.

Where can I see the full conjugation of recostar?

On the main conjugation page for recostar, which has every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, plus notes, examples and a quiz. The present-tense page covers one tense in depth if that is what you need right now.

Related links